Noise canceling headphones reduce noise volume for less distractibility and inappropriate behavior. Low noise volume in the class or home setting also improves classroom behavior. The class noise level should be kept at a low volume. Students tend to behave better when the noise level of the room is kept low. A fidget is a […]
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Strategies combining movement with expressing feelings motivates students to improve their self-regulation skills. Movement activities that involve emotion expression are especially helpful for motivating students who have behavioral, developmental, trauma history and/or sensory processing challenges. Movement activities are fun and can easily be integrated into strategies to encourage the expression and understanding of feelings. A strategy
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The new DSM-5 Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) diagnostic criteria finally includes sensory symptoms (e.g., over or under-responsiveness to or atypical interest in sensory stimuli) as part of the diagnosis and treatment of Autism. This inclusion of sensory symptoms under the domain “restricted repetitive behaviors” (RRB) expands sensory processing evaluation, research, and interventions related to the
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As greater educational demands are made on students and teachers, often beginning in preschool or kindergarten, it is increasingly important to embed brief exercise strategies into the elementary school curriculum. Movement activities done before transitions enable students to integrate their learning and behave more appropriately. Increasing time spent in seated teaching and testing along with
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Addressing functional movement skills is important in children and adolescents with functional movement and behavioral challenges. The FAB Goal-Plan-Review strategy promotes functional movement, behavioral, developmental, and learning skills. Teaching children and adolescents to use adaptive strategies and equipment addressing dyspraxia (e.g., direction following, organizational, printing, cursive writing, keyboarding, and/or shoe tying difficulties) can improve behavior
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FAB (Functionally Alert Behavior) Strategies synthesize sensory integration with behavioral strategies to help children and adolescents with behavioral, developmental, and sensory processing challenges. Some therapists limit themselves to using only sensory integration or behavioral techniques. However, combining these interventions provides opportunities for structure and child-centered movement that improve behavior in children with complex needs. Sensory
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After 20 years as a pediatric occupational therapist, I got a job as Mental Health Coordinator at Head Start and immediately discovered that children with behavioral problems and an early trauma history respond dramatically to developmental and sensory integration interventions. Many of my children who had childhood trauma and behavioral problems showed sensory discrimination, as
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The FAB Sensory Match Strategy uses individualized sensory coping strategies and reinforcement to reduce self-injurious behaviors in adolescents with psychiatric challenges. Effective treatment approaches for self-injurious behavior such as DBT, CBT, and ARC teach adolescents to use generalized coping strategies to replace self-injurious behaviors. However, research reports that adolescent self-injurers have significantly increased sensory modulation
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The FAB Rainbow goal strategy is useful for helping children and families develop goals and plans for goal achievement. The child or family begins by drawing a star at the top of the rainbow by brain storming what they would choose if they could earn anything in the world. Next, they draw five separately colored
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The FAB Pressure Touch Strategies help reduce anxiety, increase communication, and improve behavior with children who have self-control, developmental, and sensory processing challenges. FAB Pressure Touch was developed by adapting and synthesizing evidence-based Massage Techniques, QST, Knickerbocker Sensory Integration strategies, Trager Body Work, and NDT touch strategies to meet the needs of children with developmental,
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